We performed a comparison between KVM and Oracle VM VirtualBox based on our users’ reviews in five categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.
Comparison Results: Both KVM and Oracle VM VirtualBox have their strengths and weaknesses. Oracle VM VirtualBox seems to be the more favorable choice of the two, since it offers good scalability whereas scalability seems to be an ongoing issue for KVM users.
"I think nine out of the ten supercomputers in the world use Linux KVM, so I think that attests to the fact that it is a scalable product."
"A very reliable solution which can be used for x86 architecture virtualization with reasonable overhead."
"KVM is stable."
"The product's scalability is good...It's a very stable product."
"The tool's most valuable feature is backup. The product makes it easy to manage virtual machines. Other tools require third-party applications like VMware and vSphere. However, KVM doesn't require these applications."
"Scaling the solution is easy. You just have to add more hardware."
"The most valuable feature of KVM is its stability."
"The initial setup was very easy."
"It is easy to use and does not require complex knowledge."
"The solution's most valuable feature is its stability."
"Oracle VM Virtualbox is easy to use and does not require much training."
"The configuration and installation is pretty straightforward."
"Oracle VM VirtualBox has a platform where the support team responds to frequently asked questions by its users. Every time I have had issues with Oracle VM VirtualBox, I always get a solution from Oracle's online platform or GitHub."
"The product’s most valuable feature is the ability to manage multiple operating systems through one application."
"The flexibility and the closed platform, so it allows you to run in multiple platforms, Windows, Linux, Macintosh."
"I like that Oracle VM is safe and stable. It is also very easy to administer. For example, opening a VM or adding a host adapter is extremely easy."
"One thing that maybe could be improved is making it easier to scale. It needs to be more clear on how to scale the storage space for virtual machines."
"I have encountered difficulties in getting the tool's documentation."
"The speed is around thirty percent slower than another competitor. This would be something to work on."
"In KVM, snapshots and cloning are areas where there could be a little more sophistication, like VMware."
"I believe KVM offers a unified answer, while ProxMark addresses orchestration. KVM lacks orchestration. If the aim is to centrally oversee multiple KVMs – let's say to freeze them – a centralized management solution is absent."
"The KVM tech support is really bad. They are not very responsive."
"The grid interface of KVM needs improvement. It could be more beautiful, especially when compared to VMware."
"Technical support could be better. In the next release, I would like to see an improved user interface and dashboard. This type of improvement will make it easy or help our engineers understand the solution from a requirement point of view."
"I find the solution to be incredibly unstable, constantly falling over and not working properly."
"Having live migrations to move a running server to other hardware would be great."
"We're working with them to be able to allow the local USB ports to be ported over to the remote desktop, running VirtualBox."
"There are a few bugs that need to be updated."
"The solution needs to improve the methods used for starting and stopping the machine."
"The AI and the UI could be improved. The user interface is a little outdated and the AI is not very attractive."
"The solution should work to simplify the system. However, it should be flexible enough to allow for special cases."
"The installation is difficult and could be improved."
KVM is ranked 4th in Server Virtualization Software with 38 reviews while Oracle VM VirtualBox is ranked 5th in Server Virtualization Software with 61 reviews. KVM is rated 8.0, while Oracle VM VirtualBox is rated 8.2. The top reviewer of KVM writes "Delivers good performance because of kernel-based virtualization". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Oracle VM VirtualBox writes "The solution is versatile, simple to use, and stable". KVM is most compared with Proxmox VE, Hyper-V, VMware vSphere, VMware Workstation and Oracle VM, whereas Oracle VM VirtualBox is most compared with Proxmox VE, Hyper-V, Oracle VM, VMware Workstation and VMware vSphere. See our KVM vs. Oracle VM VirtualBox report.
See our list of best Server Virtualization Software vendors.
We monitor all Server Virtualization Software reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.